Shelton Planned Parenthood office closed

Amanda Cuda

Updated 10:52 pm, Friday, March 22, 2013

The Planned Parenthood office in Shelton closed Friday, which at least one local health official called a "huge loss" for the region.

The Shelton center, at 415 Howe Ave., was closed because "we made a decision to focus on the continued upgrade of our other existing centers," said Jenny Carrillo, senior vice president of external affairs and strategic planning for Planned Parenthood of Southern New England. Carrillo said the Shelton office is the only Planned Parenthood site in Connecticut closing. The organization, which provides abortions and access to birth control along with many other health services, is sometimes a target for funding cuts, but Carrillo said no such concerns played a role in shuttering the Shelton office. Rather, she said, it was a strategic decision to close one of the organization's smaller offices.

Still, the departure of the center is a blow for Valley residents who depended on it for low-cost or free health services such as pregnancy tests, pap smears, mammogram referrals and the like, said Karen Spargo, director of the Naugatuck Valley Health District. Although there are 18 Planned Parenthood centers in the state, the Shelton office was the only one in the Lower Naugatuck Valley.

"They're widely known and they're the place where a lot of residents turn for these service," Spargo said. "There's no other similar service in the Valley. This is a huge loss."

The office, which had been at the Howe Avenue location since 1988, drew roughly 2,200 patients a year for a variety of services. Carrillo said the center employed four people, all of whom are either retiring or going to other jobs within Planned Parenthood.

On its website, Planned Parenthood has note announcing the closing and listing the health centers closest to the Shelton site, including the one in Bridgeport at 211 State St. But Spargo said many of those who went to the Shelton center have limited transportation and would find it hard to travel to another city. Planned Parenthood is working with area health partners, including the Naugatuck Valley Health District, to find ways to accommodate those who need a place to go, Carillo said. The agency reportedly sent out 400 letters to various community and health care partners announcing the closure.

As of late Friday morning, Spargo said she hadn't gotten a letter and she had only learned this week of the office's closing. Still, she said, the district will work with Planned Parenthood to come up with ways to fill the gap left by the Shelton center's departure. "This is something that will have to be addressed," she said.